Reporter: It appears we are a nation of insomniacs with a tendency to pop pills, desperate for shut eye. 9 million americans admit to taking a sleep drug in the past 30 days. Are sleeping pills overprescribed? I think they are. A lot of times people don't try other methods first. Reporter: We are among the most sleep medicated countries in the world. We are 24 hour a day country. We're always on demand. Reporter: Evidence of the widespread use is prevalent on facebook where people say can't fall asleep, taking my ambien, lights out. I got to agree I have a love-hate relationship with you. You have people who want to get off of it? Yes. Reporter: Not being able to sleep can be a real curse, affecting a person's ability to function. Research shows sleep aides do work, allowing us to catch much NEEDED Zs. Is a drug induced sleep as good as falling asleep the old fashioned way? There are a lot of people who feel it's good sleep but a lot of people don't feel like the sleep quality they get is good. Reporter: Dr. Harris points out that only a limited number of studies have looked at the long term effects of chronic use. That's something people don't seem to loose sleep over as they pop another pill. Linsey davis, abc news, new york.

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Study Claims Sleeping Pill Use in US on Rise

In the US, 9 million people say they have used sleeping medication in the last 30 days.

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